SEVEN YEARS LATER…
"Happy birthday, Lambo!" I-Pin bowed before her best friend, handing over a wrapped present.
The birthday boy accepted it with grace, holding it under one arm as he wrapped I-Pin up in a one-armed hug. "Thank you, I-Pin." He pulled back, smiling softly. "I already love it."
I-Pin returned his smile and slipped past him into the party occurring in Vongola HQ.
Lambo watched her disappear before turning back to the incoming guests, setting their presents down next to him as he offered them each either a kiss on the cheek, a hug, or a handshake depending on who they were. The pile of gifts wasn't so large though the number of visitors was extensive: mostly, it was just a lot of people in touch with the Vongola family wanting an excuse to visit.
Lambo's 'coming-of-age' ceremony was just the opportunity they had needed.
He accepted more guests than presents, knowing their true motive but not really minding as much as he would have years ago. All of his family was already there and his dearest, closest friends as well.
And Reborn was there, too; though he had slipped in before the actual party, conversing with Tsuna and Dino and occasionally Tsuna's other guardians.
He had yet to acknowledge Lambo or his birthday. Hell, Lambo had watched him not too long ago aim a gun at a random person's head who was talking about his birthday. He seemed to be going out of his way to ignore the thunder guardian.
That was too bad.
"You want me to take over, Lambo?" A hand clapped down on Lambo's shoulder, squeezing comfortingly.
The teenager looked behind himself and smiled softly at who he saw. "Yamamoto."
The tall, auburn-eyed man behind him grinned down at him. "You need to enjoy your own party, not get stuck with these stuffy people." He winked and pushed Lambo insistently inside. "Go, go!"
Lambo turned back towards Yamamoto to kiss his cheek. "Thank you, Yamamoto." He disappeared inside, leaving Yamamoto to deal with the last of the guests. He would be able to handle it, Lambo knew; especially with Gokudera standing not three feet behind him, glaring death at all the incoming people.
He snaked his way through the crowd, hunting down the missing hitman and the two mafia bosses. For people who had been there not a moment ago, they were quick to disappear.
"Mukuro-san!" He heard Tsuna yelp.
"Hibari!" Dino shouted.
He cocked his head curiously towards the growing crowd of gawking onlookers. He couldn't see beyond them, but he understood without seeing what was happening: for forever and a day, Hibari and Mukuro would be obsessed with killing each other… or, to be more accurate, Hibari would be obsessed with killing Mukuro and Mukuro bent on teasing Hibari to the point where Hibari is willing to kill the next thing that comes along.
Lambo felt a minute sadness for Dino and Tsuna, who usually ended up being those next things. They usually arrived together to break their lovers apart before any death occurred.
And if they were there… Reborn wouldn't be with them; he would be somewhere towards the back of the crowd where he could still see them but couldn't be seen.
With that in mind, Lambo made his way around the crowd: bingo.
The cool and calm hitman stood with a brandy in hand and his other hand in the pocket of his sleek black Armani suit. His fedora with the yellow wraparound ribbon tipped just so over his skull, casting a shadow over his obsidian eyes and a sharper edge to his chiseled jaw.
Lambo looked back to the crowd and then back to Reborn. Smiling, he sneaked closer… closer… closer…
A gun jabs his nose. "Back off, cow." Reborn doesn't even look at him.
"Yare, yare… Lambo took a small step back to slip a finger against the muzzle and try to point it somewhere except at his face. It doesn't budge. "You need to work on your social skills." He walked around the gun and rested his hands on the hitman's chest. "I have something to tell you, stingy bastard."
"You have a suicide wish?" He eyed Lambo's hands, gun still at the ready.
"No." Lambo shook his head. "You have to come with me."
"Not if your life depended on it."
The teenager pouted and looked away, his one emerald green eye hazy with tears. "I see… So you shall ignore the wish of the birthday boy over something as silly as rankings even though I am the Vongola guardian of thunder…"
Said as such, Reborn did sound kind of stupid; on top of that, those not so focused on the mini-war occurring not too far from them were turning their attention to them.
The hitman grabbed Lambo's elbow in a bruising grip and stalked out of the large reception hall.
Once out of sight, he slammed the teenager against a wall and glowered down at the smug boy. "What is it you wanted so terribly to talk about?"
Hands behind his back, Lambo smiling innocently. "I'm 16 now."
Reborn felt his senses slipping away. "Cow…" He growled, swaying slightly on his feet. "What have you done?"
He collapsed to the ground, vision graying. Lambo leaned down and took his fedora off, running his hand through Reborn's hair. "It's softer than I thought it would be." And Reborn passed out.
From his back pocket, Lambo pulled out a small vial of sparkling golden powder, the top uncapped. "I guess it still works even though you're not really an arcobaleno anymore…" Lambo mused aloud. "It was so worth trading my horns in for a week to get this from Verde." Smiling, he glanced down at Reborn where his smile only grew. "Now to get you out of here before anyone comes by…"
Author's Note: What could Lambo possibly plan on doing with Reborn?
